The Passing Bells

If your history of WWI was primarily from this TV show you'd probably believe that all the soldiers were 16-17 years old, widely engaged in premarital sex, and that the wars were fought almost exclusively in trenches, including right up to the very end. These are all things that yes, they did happen, but were rare, or happened at points and places in the war very different from that portrayed on-screen. At first I was concerned that the 30 minute format wouldn't allow them to tell the complex nuanced stories that were the reality of the war. By the end I was glad the stories were only 30 minutes long because they were having difficulty filling the time with anything not a blatant trope.

Even if you ignore the history there's some serious structural problems. The German soldier's girlfriend/wife is a major character in the first few episodes before entirely disappearing. All of his home front scenes are about his parents and the wife appears only occasionally as a picture. Seems a little off.

Also, you might recall that the french were a major player in WWI. Something that is sort of overlooked considering that there are almost no french characters, no french scenery, and really, that the western front is located across hundreds of miles of France is barely mentioned. Here's another specific inaccuracy: During early war when the first British reinforcements with our new recruit are deploying in the aftermath of the Marne they march through fields full of poppies. Fair enough, right? Poppies are the anglophile world's key floral symbol of The Great War. Except that after the Marne was September-October 1914 and Poppies bloom in the spring and early summer. They just didn't care.

There is nothing in this show that has not been done better, elsewhere. What there is, is weak or remarkable for its inaccuracies.

Many years ago anyone staying at home during the day could watch THE SULLIVANS on ITV - an Australian soap opera that told of the experiences of a middle-class Melbourne family and the effect that World War II had on their lives. The series was very people- centered, and music was often used to set the mood of a scene in a technique that was very different from British soaps (this was in the ways when CORONATION STREET and CROSSROADS rules the network waves, and EASTENDERS had not been even thought of).

Memories of the long-forgotten Australian series were evoked through THE PASSING BELLS: written by Tony Jordan, it tells the story of World War One through the eyes of two young soldiers (Patrick Gibson, Jack Lowden), from the heady days of patriotism as they enlist, confident in the belief that the conflict will be over by Christmas, to the disillusion of 1918, when the aspirations of an entire generation were completely destroyed.

In planning a series like this for prime-time viewing before the 9 p.m. watershed on BBC, director Brendan Maher could have encountered a problem; how to emphasize the bloodiness of the conflict without resorting to graphic violence. Sensibly he chooses instead to focus on the human element; what is interesting about THE PASSING BELLS is the way the characters interact - or fail to interact - with one another. The camaraderie of episode one soon dissipates as the youngsters understand the true horror of the trenches; but even in the midst of war, some kind of friendship develops between the troops from opposite sides. This is historically accurate: hostilities inevitably ceased on Christmas Day, and the troops ventured into no-man's land to exchange a scrap of festive cheer.

And the music? In THE PASSING BELLS it is used to create mood; to emphasize the contrast between the edenic, community-focused world of prewar England and the living hell of battle, where young men had to live cheek-by-jowl in a sea of mud. Some of it might be a tad obtrusive, especially in the first episode, but the overall purpose is a good one; to make viewers aware of the social consequences of the War both at home and at the Front.

As a serial, THE PASSING BELLS works extremely well, despite the odd verbal anachronism (would people in the Edwardian era actually refer to "boyfriends" and "girlfriends"?), while not shying away from showing the destructive effects of war.

A BBC release in commemoration of the centenary of the First World War, "The Passing Bells" is a period drama on the illusions of war and the innocence shattered and victims claimed. A sentimental story of two young men with hopes of the future who find their fates intertwined in the most fateful turn of events, the television series is a Hallmark-lite family period piece that sanitizes the brutality, vulgarity and gore of war but redeems itself with its tragic ending that highlights and magnifies the crushing reality of war where nothing is precious and a dark destiny hovers over everyone affected. See this for that alone.

It's worth your time, but for me it goes in the category "seen it, not going to watch it again". Littlebit confusing in the beginning before I saw that one of the characters where german. They all spoke perfect english. Historical the great war was more gory, the trenches and the battlefield more of a living hell. This miniserie don't show that.

Not too bad, and a good job sharing the emotions of the troops on both sides. BUT.... a soppy ending that even General Hospital would reject as being.... unlikely, phoney, a plea for crocodile tears, and, insulting to the intellect of the audience.